It was a high-tech holiday

For The Reporter

Once again, high-tech products topped many holiday wish lists.

With so many new gadgets hitting the market every day, what did shoppers purchase this season?

A survey of area stores found the top five electronic items for the December 2009 holiday season included:

1. Video game systems.

2. Digital cameras.

3. MP3 players.

4. Flat-panel TVs.

5. Blue-Ray players.

Stores that sold these top products were filled with shoppers on a mission to fulfill holiday wish lists.

A visit to the King of Prussia Best Buy on the Tuesday before Christmas found a steady stream of shoppers coming and going on the cold wintery night.

General manager Johanna Dempsey said that gaming products, HDTVs and digital cameras were very popular this year.

While many shoppers stuck to the traditional in-store shopping, more high-end electronics than ever were purchased online this year.

A record $25.5 billion was spent online as of Dec. 22., according to the digital market measuring company ComScore.

As more consumers used the Internet to research and shop this holiday season, stores increased deals for online shoppers.

Many products purchased through retailer Web sites could be shipped free or at low costs, making online shopping more convenient than ever.

Special store discounts were also found for shoppers who purchased online instead of in-store.

Shoppers also turned to the Internet to research high-tech products before making gift purchases.

The online comparison shopping service, PriceGrabber.com, reported on the most researched products for the 2009 holiday season.

The top electronic products on the list included cell phones, plasma and LCD TVs, Blu-Ray players and digital cameras.

Holiday shopper Wayne Belkowitz relayed how he decided on his purchases in an interview at the Plymouth Meeting Best Buy.

"I've been on the Internet checking things out," Belkowitz said.

He left the store with a Blu-Ray player and a memory card for the digital camera he had purchased for his children.

Many other shoppers at this location were seen standing in long lines, gripping video games, and struggling to hold the bulky boxes containing the gaming systems in which the games will be played.

To ensure that consumers are getting the most out of their new high-tech purchases, many retailers have set up education programs.

Sheldon Jones is the public relations manager for Verizon Wireless in Philadelphia.

"Once a customer has purchased a new device and it is being programmed, he/she is given the option of receiving an in-store tutorial on the spot or scheduling a return visit for a 30- to 60-minute in-depth overview of their device," Jones said.

"To date, we've conducted more than 50,000 tutorials at our Device Learning Centers across the Philadelphia Tri-State Region," Jones said.

Apple also offers One-to-One, a personal training service for Mac users.

This includes face-to-face training, Web sessions and small group tutorials at any time, whether your Mac is new or old. Customers can purchase a year of this service for $99.

This season's digital trends did welcome some new products that were not listed in the top 5 category, but may be on it next year.

Some of the new products to look for next year include wireless charging stations, touch-screen computers and E-book readers.